What is the WORST pain you've ever had?

[AbsentmindedWoman]

Personally, toothache (constant background throb with searing white hot stabs that made me feel like I was being electrocuted in my skull every few seconds) gets the award for absolute worst ever. Two frozen shoulders, and adenomyosis that used to regularly have me puking and fainting and almost hallucinating on the bathroom floor are strong contenders - but miles behind. There is just something about vicious toothache that makes it the worst.

Contemplating this as just back from the dentist, where at least for now, things were ok this time

What about you?

@tnetenba

Not very serious but honestly stubbing my toe. Can you imagine that level of pain but sustained over hours, horrific! The saving grace is that it only ever hurts for a short while.

I do get some funny looks when I describe labour as 'not as bad as stubbing your toe' .

I stubbed my toe some years back and dislocated it. That was painful!

I nominate Kidney Stones as the worst. First time I had them the nurse at the hospital said they liked men to get them so they would know the pain of childbirth.

Interstitial cystitis. 24hr agonising pain that no analgesic could touch. Made me feel suicidal. I'm better now thank god but lasted 18 months

Cervical biopsy. I almost passed out. (No DC, just as well really - I seem to have next to no pain tolerance, I'd never have coped with labour!!)

I'd been scheduled to have a coil fitted at a later date, and after my reaction to the biopsy the doctor offered me a general anaesthetic for the coil. #shamefaced. In the end I opted against the coil for unrelated reasons, but I'm damn sure I'd have needed that GA.

That must sound so wussy to those who have given birth.

Drug free childbirth (no time to administer any!)
Endoscopy (is that what it is when they stick a tube with camera down your throat?). Not the most painful but the most frightening, almost impossible to breath. Horrible.

De stoning an avocado - ended up in hospital for a week whilst they tried to find a surgeon skilled enough to repair the damage and I was nil by mouth for 4 days waiting...it was fucking awful

Post op pain from reconstruction of sternum. Couldn’t even sit up without feeling like my ribs were falling out. Awful 😭

Cauda Equina

Never been more glad to live in the UK, because if I had been in the US or anywhere with easy access to guns, I would have killed myself

I am still not sure how I tolerated that pain for several days

Bilateral dermoid cysts - 1 on each ovary.
The left was the size of a slightly deflated rugby ball and had grown its own blood supply which it wrapped itself up it, then wrapped around my ovary.
Like a hot screwdriver driven into my left side.
Never felt the other side at all, but it was only cricket ball sized !
Nice 👍🏻

Ear infection...even worse than giving birth unexpectedly, at home, with no pain relief!

Gallstones and pancreatitis. Apparently kidney stone pain is even worse, I can't imagine

I think my first birth. The contractions were extremely painful but the emergency ventouse delivery and episiotomy/3rd degree tear with no pain relief was horrendous!!

Toothache definitely rivals childbirth for me...however, last year I had an abscess in my tooth and my god....I wouldn’t wish it on anybody. It was beyond unbearable and for me was as painful as labour only for a much much much much longer length of time. Horrific

Period pain (been fine since had kids). I didn't get epidural as contractions were so much shorter than period pains.

Winner: Spinal headache following lumbar puncture (combined with the meningitis headache I already had). I know now it should have been patched, but I was on my back for four weeks unable to raise my head so much as an inch without vomiting and passing out from the pain. I went to some very strange places in my head during that month.

Runners up: one or two of the migraines I've had. Two natural childbirths (including big tear) - but although massively painful seemed less painful because I understood why it was hurting IYKWIM . And Toothache from cracked tooth with Infected abscess underneath. That was a bastard fucker.

Oh good fir shear unexpected white pain... having an Italian podiatrist Lance a huge blood blister on the bottom of my heel without warning or pain relief.

The shock sent me a bit insane. There were 3 people holding me down.

DD was about 4 and was in the room as no one expected me to scream every obscenity I knew at some volume.

Afterwards I had to breathe into a bag for hours as I couldn't stop hyperventilating.

I'm no wuss but I was not expecting the pain at all.

Ear infection with subsequent burst ear drum. Childbirth without drugs was a walk in the park compared to that. At least you know childbirth is going to end, the excruciating earache felt like it was never going to end, the relief when it burst was amazing.

Broken pelvis.

To make matters worse, seven years later I still walk with a limp.

Breaking my wrist and then sitting for 4 hours in A&E because the receptionist had put the wrong ‘urgency’ rating on my notes.

Implantation pain with a pregnancy. Only knew it was that in hindsight. Thought it was kidney stones.

Both of these worse pain than labour,

kidney stones.4 days after ds2 arrived. as was bf gp reluctant give painkillers.as happened,i was vomiting,hallucinating,screaming ,crying and sky high temp. all of which were insignificant to the agony.

Meningitis , just no words can describe the pain. Child labour was a very close second but at least that had a nicer end 💖😔.

Mastitis! Felt like feeding my dd broken glass through my nipples.

Fractured tibia

Back to back labour on just gas and air for 18 hours.

@VariantL1130

I've given birth twice, have endometriosis, and broken my arm. But nothing beats the pain of having a blood sample taken from the artery in my wrist.

UGHHH I had forgotten about this! Yes, arterial blood draws are fucking horrendous.

I've had them about half a dozen times checking for diabetic ketoacidosis.

@BadgeronaMoped

3 natural births, they weren't great pain-wise, maybe 7/10 at points. Ovarian torsion however, fuck me, that was something else. I wouldn't like to feel anything worse than that

Never broken a bone so I've not got that to compare either pain to. Labour is a sort of ache pain, sharp near the end, torsion was searing/sharp.

Yes! Ovarian torsion, horrendous. But moments of zero pain then 10/10 which somehow made it worse